THE MEMORY BOX

Shot entirely in Ethiopia, the Memory Box is a story of tragedy and hope in Africa through the eyes of a most unique, chaplinesque clown called Dawish. Joining a volunteer surgical team from the West, Dawish is drawn beyond the hospital into the villages of rural Africa where the language of pantomime and wit is a universal tongue. He is at home both with the primitive tribes-people of the Omo Valley and the most urbane of the capitol city, Addis Ababa. Dawish is invited into homes, churches, AIDS centers and orphanages where he finds the humanity behind the headlines of poverty, prostitution, hunger, AIDS and hopelessness. Through the eyes of Dawish the Clown, the viewer is given a fresh view, a new perspective on the cynical predictability of the tragedy of Africa.

5th Edition of the Montréal Human Rights Film Festival | Official Selection in Art and Resistance Category for the documentary Grand Prize along and the Public Prize | March 19th and 21st, 2010 | Cinéma du Parc Montréal (Qc) [Canada]

Boston International Film Festival, Official selection 2009

57th Columbus International Film Festival, Honourable Mention 2009

Rallye Expo Pan-Africa International 2008 National Film Board of Canada